The doctor does house calls. When this photograph was taken there were only a few piercing shops in the world; for clients unable to visit a piercer it was often on the piercer to visit them. I have fond memories of Jack Yount putting on his reading glasses before a procedure; in this case a Prince Albert which Jack performed from the urethra out, and telling stories as he worked to take the client’s mind off of what was happening.

This photograph was taken before universal precautions were widely practices in the piercing community and is presented for documentation and should not be considered best practice.

These photos, which were taken in 1981 by Sailor Sid Diller, originally appeared on the spcOnline site in 1998 and feature legendary British Tattooist/Piercer Alan ‘Mr. Sebastian’ Oversby performing a Prince Albert piercing. Techniques have evolved over time- here we see Alan piercing from the inside of the urethra out with no receiving tube. Great care had to be taken to not knick the inside of the urethra, making it a less then ideal way to perform the piercing.

My own P.A. was done by Jack Yount using this method before he began using a NRT.

Sometimes when I’m trying to be clever, I use California Roll as a descriptor when I’m identifying something as the safe, starter choice for trying something new. Chicken Curry is the California Roll of Indian food; the 5k is the California Roll of running, and the Prince Albert is…

You get the picture. It’s the intro piercing most men get when they begin to explore the idea of genital piercing. Frenum, Dydoes, Apadravya and the oft-dreaded/oft-treasured Ampallang may follow, but for the majority of men finding themselves in the stirrups for the first time, the PA- which is quick and painless for the most part, easy to heal and easier to stretch is a great way to start.

Most piercers have long since lost count of how many Prince Alberts they’ve performed in their career- a blur of receiving tubes and miles upon miles of ready to be pierced penis- but almost everyone remembers their first. When they have to fight not appear more nervous than the client and make sure that it all goes smoothly you can be sure that it leaves an indelible impression.

One of my favorite WHO’S WHO features in PFIQ Magazine was on a piercing/tattoo enthusiast and Gauntlet regular named Jim A. 1 who had the distinction of being Jim Ward’s first Prince Albert piercing. In his indispensable memoir ‘Running the Gauntlet’ Jim says:

At that time, I had not yet invented the piercing needle and was using large veterinary hypodermic needles. Trying to follow the beveled point of the needle with the jewelry was virtually impossible. The other challenge was the technique Doug used of piercing into the tip of a cotton swab. By some miracle I managed to do the piercing, but the procedure was extremely bloody. Despite everything, Jim was a good sport, and over the years became a regular customer as well as a close friend.

I remember reading the interview with Jim A. in one of the early issues of PFI and falling in love with his genital tattoos by tattoo legend Cliff Raven- this photo, originally published on SPCOnline in 1998, features his hardware, including the original PA Piercing by Jim Ward. Other than being a friend/client of the Gauntlet, Anderson assisted in creating the PFIQ Crosswords that ran from issue #36 (1991) through #42 (1993).

If you’d like to share the story of your first Prince Albert (getting or giving) please use the comments forum below!

Recent Posts: Occult Vibrations

The incomparable Paul Sayce spent some time chatting with Alex Binnie at this year’s London Tattoo Convention; the history of Into You, memories of Mr. Sebastian and more. If you don’t already subscribe to Paul’s channel– treat yourself.

Our friend Alice of the Dead will be showing new paintings this weekend at I HATE TATTOOS in London; she’s promised strange new art, good music and excellent company. Saturday, May 26 at 6 PM – 11:55 PM I Hate Tattoos Tattoo Studio Unit 1 400-404 York Way N7 9LR London, United Kingdom